AhlulBayt News Agency

source : AFP
Monday

15 August 2011

7:30:00 PM
259812

Gaddafi to followers: Prepare for battle

Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi has called on his supporters to prepare for a battle in order to seize towns and cities held by revolutionaries.

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - In an audio message aired on Libyan state television early on Monday, Gaddafi urged his supporters to resist attacks by NATO and opposition fighters as they approach Tripoli.

While the state television said the message was broadcast live, much of it was inaudible due to a "technical breakdown."

"The end of the colonizer is close and the end of the rats is close. They flee from one house to another before the masses who are chasing them... The colonizer and its agents can now only resort to lies and psychological warfare after all the wars with all the weapons have failed,” Gaddafi said in the message.

Revolutionary forces have announced that they are advancing toward the capital Tripoli from the west.

They have seized Sorman and Gharyan, and also captured most parts of Zawiyah, located about 50 kilometers west of the capital.

Libya has been the scene of intense fighting between government troops and revolutionary forces since a revolution, seeking to topple Gaddafi, began in mid-February.

Over the past six months, forces loyal to Gaddafi have killed thousands of Libyan civilians.

In addition, NATO airstrikes have reportedly claimed the lives of over a hundred civilians since March.

NATO began bombing "military targets" in Libya on March 19 after the UN Security Council approved a resolution on March 17, authorizing force by whatever means necessary, with the exception of a ground invasion, to "protect civilians."

The United States, France, and Britain say they will not stop their military operations until Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi is removed from power.

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